Snowflakes in May? Why not!

It may be mid-May, but I'm still getting orders for my Hand-Etched Maple Snowflake Ornaments.  

And that's just fine by me ;) 

These are now currently out-of-stock in the Etsy shop, but I have stacks of wood ready to cut and dry for more.  Once I finish getting our veggie garden in, Etsy shop products are top on my to-do list!

Nûby Review: Bath Letters and Numbers + GIVEAWAY!

Today I'm reviewing Nûby's Bath Letters and Numbers - and to top it off we're giving away a set of these over on Instagram (details below)!  | This post contains affiliate links and an honest review of products provided to us by Nuby |

I was so excited when we received these Bath Letters and Number to review from Nûby.  I was looking for something a little different than the boats and rubber animals Miss M has now and I thought these foam letters would be a nice change of pace.  

These bath letters are phthalate and BPA free which is very important to us, and are recommended for ages 18+ months.  Right now Maddie just loves the colors and shapes of them but as she gets older these will be a great tool to teach numbers and letters.  They stick remarkably well to the wall of the tub when wet, and our little one had a lot of fun moving them around and taking them on and off. 

I initially had some reservations that these would stay wet for a long time and get yucky in storage but that wasn't the case at all - the foam dries remarkably fast and holding moisture isn't an issue.  Overall these are a simple, fun toy for in and out of the tub.  

*GIVEAWAY*

We've partnered with Nûby to give a set of these Bath Letters and Numbers to one lucky winner on Instagram!  Follow me (@birchlandinghome) and find our giveaway post for details and to enter.  Good luck!  

- I received this item for review from Nûby but all opinions expressed are my own.  Please see our full Disclosure Policy for more information -   

Nûby's Bath Letters and Numbers can be purchased at BuyBabyDirect.com, Baby Depot, and Amazon.  

Protecting Your Children's Identity Online

Two of my favorite blogs, WillowCrowns and Olive & Tate, recently posted their views on how they work to protect their kids online and it opened my eyes to some of the new weird stuff that's going on out there (like baby role-playing, so creepy).  Everybody has their own opinion of what's okay or safe to share or not to share and I have to warn I take a much more overly-cautious approach than most.  I encourage you to read Megan and Stephanie's posts to see their tips, which I think would be of help for most bloggers who still want to share a lot of personal photos with the world.  

For me, I try very hard to keep public photos of our little one to an extreme minimum.  I don't have her in my profile pictures or cover photos and all my personal accounts are locked down to "friends only."  Even still, I try not to post too many photos of her even on my private accounts.  Instead I do share a lot of photos with family and close friends in texts or e-mails (sorry for filling up your inboxes, guys!).  I feel like I have a lot more control over who has access to the pictures I share this way.  

I know as a blogger the best way to make a personal connection with your audience is to share personal photos and stories of your life, and while many of the blogs I enjoy reading most do just that I'm not willing to risk putting all that out there.  

I'm certainly not an internet privacy expert, and my tips aren't 100% fool-proof, but I encourage you to read on for some basic tips I feel are very important for everyone.    

Basic Internet Safety Tips

1. If you have a blog or a business, create separate accounts (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram) for personal use and for public use.  Make sure all your personal accounts are locked down to "private."  
2. Never use photos of your children or your home in your profile or cover photos.  
3. Go through your friends list and make sure you're okay sharing information with everyone on it.  If not, consider un-friending people or moving them to a "Restricted/Limited Profile" List (this feature is available on Facebook).  
4. Turn off Geotagging on photos which could be used to pinpoint the exact places your photos are taken, even right down to your living room.  A quick explanation and how-to video on how to turn it off can be found here.  
5. Never publicly check-in or add locations to photos - and don't use the "Name this Location" feature on Instagram (at least not publicly), even to put in witty headlines.  I don't know how many times I've seen a fellow blogger use the Name this Location field on Instagram to put in a plug for their website or a sale.  However, if you're not careful, it records exactly where you posted that picture from.  If someone clicks on that field it then brings up a map and you can zoom right down to the street view of wherever the picture is posted from (in other words, you just showed everyone on the internet exactly where you live).  
6. If you have a blog or business, get a PO Box and don't use your home address.  Make sure to use the PO Box for all business correspondence, return addresses on product you're shipping out, and to receive products for collabs or to review.  

Am I a little over-protective?  Probably.  But watermarks can be photoshopped out, photos can be stolen, locations can be pinpointed.. unfortunately it's the age we live in and I think everyone - blogger or not - needs to be aware and a little more wary.  

Do you have any other basic internet privacy tips to add?  Please share them below.  

Nûby Review: No-Spill Insulated Cool Sipper

The last few days have been hot in New England and it (finally) feels like spring.  Even the last bit of snowbank in our yard has finally melted too - hooray!  I thought a warm day like today would be a great time to review our Nûby No-Spill Insulated Cool Sipper Cup.  | This post contains affiliate links and an honest review of products provided by Nûby |

This cup is a Step 4 training cup and is recommended for ages 18-months+.  Maddie is almost 17 months old and I think for most toddlers you could introduce this cup to them a little early if they seem ready.  Maddie has always been a bit behind in her oral development and so it took her a little longer than I think it would for most kids to get the hang of how to tip the cup up and sip through the spout, but she did it.  I can certainly see how this cup helps transition little ones to drink from an open cup.  

The cup has an insulated base which helped keep Miss M's water cold while we were drawing with chalk out on the hot pavement.  It has a soft silicone spout and is BPA-free which is very important to us.  I really liked that the cup only has three parts (cup, spout, and threaded top), which is so much easier to clean than the straw cups with a million parts that Maddie is currently using.  I'd say the only improvement that could make it easier to clean would be to make it dishwasher safe.  

- I received this item for review from Nûby but all opinions expressed are my own.  Please read our full Disclosure Policy for more information. -   

Nûby's No-Spill Insulated Cool Sipper can be purchased at Amazon and Big Lots.  

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Here Comes The Sun

I had to share this picture, I just love the sun that comes in the craft room in the morning.  It makes you want to get started on some projects.. now if only a little one would let me get some work done ;)  

Baby Chicks!

This past week we grew our family by six!  Six little baby chicks, that is.  
I've always wanted chickens and goats for as long as I can remember and while goats are a no-go in our neighborhood, chickens are something we can do!  Our little one LOVES animals so we figured now would be a great time to introduce some chickens to our family.  

It's. So. FLUFFY!

As far as breed goes, we were hoping to get New Hampshire Reds but chickens are getting to be a hot commodity around here and were selling out fast at all the local farm & garden stores.  Therefore we decided to settle for Rhode Island Reds instead, a very similar breed.  

| Keeping Chickens by Ashley English |

My husband has grown up with chickens so we already have an experienced chicken farmer in the house, but since I don't know too much about keeping chickens I've been doing my homework ;)  

Meeting the girls!  Miss M loved the chicks and kept laughing and pointing at them while Harley didn't really care much about them at all.  That's pretty funny because if Harley sees a robin in the lawn she will charge it and chase it out of the yard in a heartbeat.  

Sorry this bathroom is occupied!  

Our guest bathroom will be home to these ladies for the next month or so until they get big enough to move to the coop.  In this box they have shavings, water, chick starter feed, and a heat lamp above.  Hubby made a window out of Plexiglas so Miss M and Harley can keep an eye on the chickies (we put a baby gate across the doorway so they can't get too close though).  

It's just incredible how fast they grow!  In less than a week they went from sweet, tiny little balls of fluff to much more wary, bigger little chickens - complete with wings and tail feathers coming in.  It won't be too much longer until we can move them out into the coop!  

Nûby Review: Octopus Floating Bath Toy

This is my first Nûby review and I am so excited to be a part of their Parent Blogger Network!  Maddie has been a huge fan of their sippy cups from the beginning, and for the longest time their Flip 'N Sip Straw Cup was the only kind she'd use.  They've sent me a few products to try and share with you, the first of which is their Octopus Floating Bath Toy.   

This little floating octopus comes with 3 fun-shaped rings to "toss" on his arms in the bath, and while the rings are too small to actually toss them on successfully it is a great toy to work on hand-eye coordination with.  Our little one loved taking the rings on and off repeatedly.  

The bright, fun colors and shapes of the octopus were also a big hit; Maddie was particularly drawn to his big googly-looking eyes.  In fact, when she was playing with it she pointed to his eye, looked at me, and said "eyeee" - the first time she's ever done that!  

One thing I loved about the design of this toy was that it didn't have a hole in the bottom, as most bath toys do.  Bath toys with a hole tend to hold moisture inside and grow mold so it's great that this one was fully enclosed.  

The one thing that really disappointed me about this toy though was that it's made out of PVC, a material that we consciously try to limit in our house - in fact we go as far as to only buy PVC-free shower curtains.  I didn't realize that it was made out of PVC until after her bath.  It's really unfortunate because Maddie loved the Octopus but the material is something we choose not to use.  

- I received this item for review from Nûby but all opinions expressed are my own -   

Nûby's Octopus Floating Bath Toy can be purchased at various retailers including Amazon and Kohl's.  

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Okay, so I totally framed it..

Okay, so I totally framed the December issue of Martha Stewart Living Magazine along with the little feature of my Hand-Etched Maple Snowflake Ornaments.  

I felt a little silly about it at first but being featured was a huge honor and having it hanging in the craft room is just more motivation to keep at my little Etsy business and blog.  

And I have to confess.. it is fun seeing it hanging up :)  It's always been a dream to get into a big publication like Martha Stewart or Country Living and even though the feature was small I can now say I've done it. 

So tell me, would you have framed it too..?